Using biochemical approaches to investigating the trafficking and mechanism of action of the antiviral molecule, IFITM3

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Cells of the immune system, due to the nature of their job,
often find themselves at sites of active virus infection.
Immune cells can up-regulate the expression of an array of molecules
upon entry into an inflamed/infected tissue and these molecules help
render them resistant to infection. One such molecule, interferon
induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3), is a potent antiviral protein
having the capacity to render cells resistant to influenza virus
infection. To date, the precise antiviral mechanism(s) of IFITM3 is
unknown. It is thought that IFITM3 blocks a very early step in the
virus replication cycle, after viral endocytosis but preceding primary
transcription (Figure 1). Using biochemical approaches, and advanced
microscopy techniques (Figure 2) we are currently investigating the
mechanism of action of IFITM3. We are also investigating how the
expression of this antiviral molecule is regulated in different cell types.